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Angela Hewitt Toronto2017 (cropped)
Angela Hewitt at a concert in 2017

Angela Hewitt is a famous Canadian classical pianist. She was born on July 26, 1958. Angela Hewitt is especially known for playing the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, a very famous composer. She has received special honors like the Order of Canada (CC) and the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her amazing musical talents.

Angela Hewitt's Musical Journey

Angela Hewitt was born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Her father, Godfrey Hewitt, was a choirmaster, which means he led a choir at a big church. Angela started learning to play the piano when she was only three years old, taught by her mother. She was so good that she earned a scholarship at age five!

She also learned to play the violin and the recorder, and even took ballet lessons. When she was nine, she gave her first full piano concert. She studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto and later at the University of Ottawa.

Performing Around the World

Angela Hewitt has traveled all over the world, performing concerts by herself and with orchestras. An orchestra is a large group of musicians who play different instruments together. She is most famous for her recordings of Johann Sebastian Bach's music. She started recording all of Bach's main keyboard pieces in 1994 and finished in 2005.

She has also recorded music by many other famous composers, including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Robert Schumann, Frédéric Chopin, and Claude Debussy. In 2007 and 2008, she spent a whole year performing Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier in major cities around the world. This is a very important collection of music for piano.

Trasimeno Music Festival

In July 2005, Angela Hewitt started her own music festival in Perugia, Italy, called the Trasimeno Music Festival. She is still the artistic director, which means she helps choose the musicians and plan the concerts for the festival.

Her Special Piano

Since 2002, Angela Hewitt has played Fazioli pianos. These are very special pianos made in Italy. In January 2020, her unique Fazioli piano was accidentally dropped by movers and was too damaged to be fixed. But she was able to choose a new Fazioli piano in January 2021.

Awards and Honors

Angela Hewitt has won many awards and honors throughout her career.

  • In 1975, she won a Chopin Young Pianists' Competition and a Bach competition.
  • She won third prize in the Robert Casadesus International Piano Competition in 1979.
  • In 1985, she won first prize in the Toronto International Bach Piano Competition. This led to her first major recording.
  • The Canadian Music Council named her "Artist of the Year" in 1986.

Important National Awards

In 2000, she was made an Officer of the Order of Canada (OC). This is a very high honor given to Canadians who have made a big difference. In 2002, she received the National Arts Centre Award for her outstanding performances.

In 2006, she was named an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by the United Kingdom. She was also named "Gramophone Artist of the Year" in 2006, which is a big award in classical music. She received the MIDEM Classical Award for Instrumentalist of the Year in 2010.

Angela Hewitt has also received special degrees from many universities, recognizing her achievements. On December 30, 2015, she was promoted to Companion of the Order of Canada, which is the highest level of this honor.

Personal Life

After living in Paris for several years, Angela Hewitt moved to London in 1985. London has been her main home ever since.

Selected Recordings

Here are some of the albums Angela Hewitt has recorded:

See also

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